Cultural differences are different "lenses" through which people
from various
cultures view the world and that define what people see, how
they make sense of what they see, and how they express themselves.
Cultural
Intelligence (CQ)
is an ability to understand
diverse cultural heritage,
wisdom and values, and to deal
effectively with people from
different cultural background
and understanding.
"Self-expression styles" refer
to the ways in which people
choose to express themselves
through their appearance,
creations, performances, and
reactions. These styles often
reflect an individual's
personality, values, and beliefs
as well as cultural norms.
Cultural misintelligence – a
mistaken impression,
misunderstanding – is the most
common cause of failure of
diversity-rich ventures. To
illustrate, around 50% of CEOs
cited cultural differences as
the main
cause of failure of their join
ventures.
People from different cultures
see things and think
differently. See cultural
diversity as an asset not as a
threat.
To
discover opportunities
created by diversity, ask
yourself
"Why? What If?" questions:
"Why should we look at cultural
differences as a problem? What
if we try to leverage the power
of our diversity?
Love breeds love everywhere. Love all
people, and they will love you back. If you love all people, you
will understand them better and strive to create greater value for
your loved ones relentlessly.
Multicultural Teams
Cultural intelligence acted upon
often helps achieve
breakthroughs. For instance, a
multicultural team at DuPont
gained US$ millions in new
business by changing the way
decorating materials are
developed and marketed. The
changes included new
colors that team members
new, from their experience
within other cultures, would
appeal more to their overseas
customers.
